Known for her exuberant, youthful take on traditional design, interior designer Meg Braff creates livable spaces imbued with playful glamour and a modern perspective. From her home base in New York, Meg is currently working on residential commissions from the East Coast to the Caribbean. On top of her design work, Meg acquired the Philip Graf archive in 2011, and began modernizing and recoloring his wallpaper patterns, as well as opening her own shop, Meg Braff Antiques & Decoration, in Locust Valley, New York.
We chatted with Meg about what inspires her designs, her personal style picks and her favorite insider spots in New York City. Read on below, and shop Meg’s look on Chairish here.
DESIGN TIPS & TRICKS
Favorite way to add drama to a room: A large scale wallpaper will do the trick every time, especially if the room is lacking strong architecture.
Favorite source for design inspiration: I love interiors from the 1930s and 1940s. They are often supremely elegant, but less ‘decorated’ than the rooms of today.
Favorite pattern: It’s hard to pick just one, as I own a wallpaper and fabric company full of exuberant patterns, but my current fave is called ‘Oriental Pastorale’: it’s a bright aqua chinoiserie toile with a graphic treillage pattern. I used it in the dressing room of my new home and it makes me smile every day.
Favorite color combo: Aqua, aubergine and chartreuse. Really, I love any combination of those three colors.
Favorite way to mix high and low: I love to use rattan furniture and sisal carpets as a counterpoint to fine antiques and more formal spaces. They take the edge off and make a room feel more comfortable and approachable, while retaining a certain elegance.
Favorite way to work a bit of vintage into a room: I’ll put vintage pieces pretty much anywhere. The perfectly scaled chair with a charming detail, vintage sofas that I’ll have remade, coffee tables at just the write height with a bit of patina. A sanding and a coat of paint or lacquer can give new life to just about anything vintage.
A FEW OF MEG’S FAVORITE THINGS
Favorite travel destination: St. Barts! And every year we go hunting with friends, in Northern England at an incredible house near Newcastle. I look forward to that trip all year long!
Favorite hotel to check into: The Berkley in London. The location is fabulous and I love the pool!
Favorite weekend activity: Playing tennis with my husband.
Favorite thank you/hostess gift: I often send flowers as a thank you. I love to give truffled Almonds. And at Christmas, Caroline’s Caramel Cakes.
Favorite adult beverage: Rosé in the summer.
Favorite entertaining essential: Great cocktail napkins. I collect vintage linens and always have some fun ones on hand.
Favorite artist: Roger Muhl and Gabriel Goddard.
Favorite thing to collect: Cabbage ware! I collect every color.
NEW YORK HOT SPOTS
Favorite restaurant: Le Bilboquet is our go-to in the neighborhood.
Favorite hotel to recommend visiting friends: The Lowell.
Favorite local culture hub: I love spending time at the New York Botanical Gardens.
Favorite local attraction: Westbury Gardens is just magical.
Favorite local flea market/vintage hunting ground: The Saint Johns Fair, a local church fair in Locust Valley, is great! I’ve found some great pieces there over the years.
SHOP MEG BRAFF’S CHAIRISH FAVORITES >>
Featured photo by J. Savage Gibson. All photos courtesy of Meg Braff.
